Petrified Forest National Park

Sitting in the remote eastern part of Arizona, 30 miles from the border of New Mexico, Petrified Forest National Park is home to rich history and incredible geological features. Back in the days of Pangea, Petrified Forest used to be located at the same latitude as Costa Rica is now, before the supercontinent was broken up. Then it was occupied by the Pueblo ~1,000 years ago, and then in 1928 Route 66 was established from Chicago to LA, running smack dab through Petrified Forest. Throughout this long history, the tropical trees fell and were buried quickly and deeply in an ancient river system. Deprived of oxygen, the degradation of the wood slowed, and over time it absorbed minerals, including silica from volcanic ash. The minerals slowly replaced the organic matter of the trees, and the impurities in the forming quartz (iron, manganese, carbon) created a magnificent rainbow display of colors. And yes, the petrified wood does feel like rock!

I assumed it was a small park, given that there is only one road that runs through it, north-south. This 28-mile road is packed with viewpoints and access to short hiking trails, where you can explore ancient forests filled with logs that turned to stone, you can peer over the Painted Desert, watch birds and rabbits and other critters scoot about their desert life, even see a Puebloan house built out of the petrified wood. It also contains blue mesas or buttes, which are much like those located in the more well-known Badlands National Park, but are unique in their white and blue-ish-purple coloration.

Photographing the park is made somewhat more difficult by the fact that it closes at sunset and doesn’t open until after sunrise. The only option to be in the park and enjoy the best of golden and blue hour is to camp in the wilderness areas (requires a free permit).

I came out to this park directly from the Grand Canyon. Being at high elevation at the Grand Canyon, it was exceptionally cold. But, I didn’t get any reprieve coming out to Petrified Forest! Even when I was hiking around an hour after the sun came up, it was still only 19 degrees. Although most of us think of desert and heat almost synonymously, the desert has huge temperature swings due to its extremely dry air. So lows in the teens and highs in the 40’s was about what you could expect out here. Although I don’t know if I’ll ever “plan” to come back here again, if I’m passing by, I’ll definitely make some extra time to come back to this park.